Chapter 5: The Eight-Clawed Soul Fish

“Qu Tian, why do you get a soul core every time you attack a Four-Headed Soul Snake?”
“Right, do you know which Four-Headed Soul Snake has a soul core?”
“You’re willing to use so many spirit talismans all at once? Which sect do you come from to be so wealthy?”
“I feel your speed has reached the middle stage of the Tribulation Crossing phase. How do you possess such a powerful speed secret technique?”
With the swarm of soul snakes scattered, Chu Gao, Zu Xiao, Zhuang Xiao, Zong Chun, and Yue Zheng immediately voiced all their questions.
Qu Yi merely smiled. How could he reveal his secrets? They were just teaming up to explore the Soul Star Region; they hadn’t reached a level of complete trust yet.
Seeing Qu Yi remain silent, the five realized they had been too forward and smiled awkwardly, falling silent as they pondered in their minds.
After a while of silence, Yue Zheng suddenly laughed and flew in front of Qu Yi, saying, “Qu Tian, you must have gathered over thirty soul cores by now. These soul cores from the Consolidation phase could be useful for some of my clan’s younger members. May I buy five from you?”
Chu Gao, Zu Xiao, Zhuang Xiao, and Zong Chun’s eyes lit up. They immediately realized the importance of soul cores. Although they themselves were already at the late Consolidation phase, these cores from the late, middle, and early stages were no longer useful to them. However, their sect or clan’s younger disciples, some of whom were still in the Diversion phase, could refine these cores to easily advance to the Consolidation phase.
“Right, Qu Tian, can you sell these soul cores to me? State your conditions; anything will do,” Chu Gao, Zu Xiao, Zhuang Xiao, Zong Chun, and Yue Zheng all said, expressing the same request.
With all five making such requests at once, Qu Yi’s expression darkened instantly.
“I won’t sell them!” he declared firmly, leaving no room for negotiation.
What a joke! Qu Yi’s San Ding Sect and his subordinates already had many who had reached the Diversion phase. Giving them these soul cores would help them advance their spiritual realms. Even if they couldn’t use them all at once, his sect’s members would need them in the future. Why would he sell them to others?
Qu Yi wasn’t short of medicinal pills, nor spirit stones. He had an abundance of magical artifacts, and he also had his own cultivation techniques. In short, he lacked nothing. Why would he sell such important soul cores?

Chu Gao, Zu Xiao, Zhuang Xiao, Zong Chun, and Yue Zheng were startled upon hearing this. They really didn’t expect Qu Yi to be so disrespectful. However, they had no reason to force Qu Yi to sell them these soul cores—after all, Qu Yi had obtained them himself and even given away hundreds of spirit talismans at the Convergence Stage. To them, it was as if Qu Yi had helped them out.

So, though displeased, they didn’t want to turn against him and instead walked away resentfully. Only Yue Zheng, with his back turned to Qu Yi, had a vicious look in his eyes, clearly having made up his mind.

Just then, loud cries came from afar as another group of soul beasts approached.

The alarm from the swarm of soul snakes finally drew a response from other soul beast groups on this planet, and a powerful group of them arrived.

Qu Yi and his five companions immediately became alert, releasing their spiritual senses to sense the movements of those beast groups. If any particularly strong group arrived, they might just teleport away right away.

The group of soul beasts that came surprised them all—they were eight-clawed soul fish. Indeed, in the memories of cultivators, these creatures should have belonged to the marine demon beast category. But in this Heart Soul Star Region, these eight-clawed soul fish crawled on land. With each of their tentacles striking the ground, they left a faint afterimage in the air, all possessing strength at the Convergence Stage.

“The number is huge! There are over a thousand soul beasts at the Convergence Stage again. It seems there are more eight-clawed soul fish at the later stages of Convergence than soul snakes—no less than five hundred. We can’t fight them.”

“The number of eight-clawed soul fish is at least ten thousand, and all of them are above the Divided Soul Stage. It seems they came from nearby areas, with the strongest ones arriving first. The rest should be coming soon too.”

“The Heart Soul Star Region is truly strange. These soul beasts have gone beyond mere group battles. It seems that whenever one side is in trouble, help comes from all directions.”

“These eight-clawed soul fish are faster than soul snakes and also stronger overall. I think we’d better save our true energy and avoid direct confrontation.”

In an instant, Chu Gao, Zu Xiao, Zhuang Xiao, and Zong Chun all expressed their thoughts, none of them willing to fight against the eight-clawed soul fish.

At that moment, Yue Zheng suddenly said, “Everyone, don’t be afraid. We have Qu Tian in our team. With so many spirit talismans, I believe he can kill all these eight-clawed soul fish.”

Hearing this, Qu Yi’s eyes sharpened, and a murderous intent arose in his heart.

Because he hadn’t managed to obtain a soul core just now, Yue Zheng started to reject Qu Yi. He proposed that Qu Yi go alone to deal with the Eight-Claw Soul Fish; if he failed to eliminate them, it would be Qu Yi’s responsibility alone. If Qu Yi couldn’t do it, Yue Zheng would likely take the chance to mock him.

Sure enough, Chu Gao, Zu Xiao, Zhuang Xiao, and Zong Chun all looked at Qu Yi, thinking to themselves that since Qu Yi had casually used a hundred spirit talismans while fighting the Soul Snakes, he must have many more. The five of them subconsciously believed that these Eight-Claw Soul Fish should fall on Qu Yi alone.

Qu Yi simply smiled at Yue Zheng and said, “I can go and wipe out these Eight-Claw Soul Fish, but you guys must not come to fight over the soul cores—not even one.”

At this point, Qu Yi didn’t want to directly confront Yue Zheng, nor did he want to kill someone just because of a few words. So, he took this opportunity to put forward his conditions.

Upon hearing this, Chu Gao, Zu Xiao, Zhuang Xiao, Zong Chun, and Yue Zheng all trembled, realizing that these Eight-Claw Soul Fish likely contained soul cores in large numbers. The five of them fell silent.

Qu Yi stood aside with a cold smile, no longer pressing them, waiting for those Eight-Claw Soul Fish to fly over.

“Okay, we agree to your terms. As long as you eliminate all the Eight-Claw Soul Fish, we won’t fight over the soul cores,” Chu Gao, Zu Xiao, Zhuang Xiao, and Zong Chun all agreed. But Yue Zheng hesitated and remained silent.

Seeing that the Eight-Claw Soul Fish were already a hundred miles away and about to arrive, Qu Yi didn’t bother waiting for Yue Zheng’s response. He flew forward alone to confront them.

The eighteen thousand Eight-Claw Soul Fish slapped the ground, creating sonic booms as they broke through the air—their momentum was immense. Even an ordinary powerhouse at the Consolidation stage would likely be scared to death.

At this moment, Qu Yi arrived in front of those eighteen thousand Eight-Claw Soul Fish and suddenly took out a hundred spirit talismans.

“Human, with your cultivation at the late Consolidation stage, you dare to come to our Soul Heart Star Region? You’re simply seeking death.”

“Human, I can already smell the scent of your flesh. I don’t want your soul—I just want to eat your flesh.”

“Human, this isn’t how one becomes a hero. You dare to go alone against one of the strongest groups of soul beasts in the Soul Heart Star Region. You really think your life is precious.”

The Eight-Claw Soul Fish at the forefront sent their spiritual messages one after another, filling Qu Yi’s ears with their voices.

Qu Yi sneered and immediately threw all the hundred Spirit Talismans in his hand at once, creating a semi-spherical encirclement. Then, these talismans simultaneously unleashed their respective spells. Spells at the Hundred-Combination level sent powerful energy waves into the space where the Eight-Claw Soul Fish were, killing those that tried to shrink and transform. The bodies of the Eight-Claw Soul Fish turned into mushrooms, with their heads pointing downward and their eight tentacles curled above to form a “mushroom cap.” These creatures could only use soul-based attack spells and could not accumulate true energy to launch spell attacks, though their physical defense was slightly better than that of Soul Snakes. Spells at the early combination level only left cracks on the transformed bodies of the Eight-Claw Soul Fish without causing fatal damage. However, those in the Divided-Mind stage were all killed by a single wave of talisman attacks. Qu Yi was somewhat surprised to find that the Eight-Claw Soul Fish at the combination stage were only injured and not dead, but he quickly resolved himself. He took out another hundred Spirit Talismans and threw them into the air above the Eight-Claw Soul Fish. The talismans once again unleashed spell attacks, tormenting and destroying the injured creatures. “Human, I won’t let you go! I’ll tear apart your soul!” “Human, you’re so despicable! I won’t eat your flesh—I’ll bite your soul bit by bit every day!” “Human, you’ve angered our Eight-Claw Fish tribe! You’ll face deadly revenge!” … Under the severe blows from the talismans, the Eight-Claw Soul Fish at the combination stage angrily transmitted messages to Qu Yi, filled with hatred and cruelty. Qu Yi merely sneered—these Eight-Claw Fish really were full of bravado. After this wave of attacks, the more than a thousand Eight-Claw Soul Fish at the combination stage suffered heavy damage; they could no longer transform and reverted to their original form. At this point, Qu Yi stopped using the talismans. Although Qing Wu had crafted many talismans at the combination level, they couldn’t be wasted carelessly—every bit was precious! Holding his Golden Spear, Qu Yi used his golden-speed secret technique to quickly reach the remaining Eight-Claw Soul Fish, denying them any chance to attack his soul. With swift movements, beams of golden true energy were fired into their bodies, killing them one by one. The speed was so fast that in just one flash, dozens of Eight-Claw Soul Fish lost their life force.

Qu Yi’s true energy seemed inexhaustible, and his speed never diminished. After a few rounds, those Eight-Claw Soul Fish that hadn’t yet reacted were nearly wiped out. This time, Qu Yi had already obtained hundreds of soul cores, most of them from later stages of fusion. Watching Qu Yi perform, Chu Gao, Zu Xiao, Zhuang Xiao, Zong Chun, and Yue Zheng all felt immense envy—envying the numerous spirit talismans he possessed, his speed, and the large number of soul cores he had acquired. All five of them could hear their own breathing becoming ragged.

“Guys, since we’re forming a team of six this time, are we really going to let Qu Tian get all these soul cores by himself?” Suddenly, Yue Zheng sent a message to the other four via spiritual communication. Chu Gao, Zu Xiao, Zhuang Xiao, and Zong Chun all turned to look at Yue Zheng, showing signs of surprise.

“Since we’ve already agreed to Qu Tian’s terms, we must abide by them. He killed the soul beasts, so the soul cores naturally belong to him,” Chu Gao replied immediately through spiritual communication.

“There will be more opportunities later. As long as we encounter any lone soul beasts, we can still kill them. I believe Qu Tian won’t be greedy in the upcoming actions,” Zu Xiao also sent a message to the others.

“Although I’m envious, I won’t push my luck. I came to the Soul Star Region just hoping to possibly obtain a soul core from a soul beast at the early stage of tribulation,” Zhuang Xiao replied via spiritual communication.

“Since we’re all in a team together, everything should be divided equally—that’s what fairness requires. We need to discuss this with Qu Tian. Either he leaves these soul cores and goes his own way, or he hands them over so we can all share them equally,” Zong Chun said. Seeing Yue Zheng’s proposal, his own greed arose, and he immediately agreed, sending a message to the other four.

For a while, the five of them kept exchanging messages, discussing Qu Yi. Meanwhile, Qu Yi continued to wield his Golden Spear, killing one after another of the Eight-Claw Soul Fish. In the end, only ten Eight-Claw Soul Fish from later stages of fusion remained alive, but they were barely clinging to life. After being attacked by two waves of spirit talismans and Qu Yi’s attacks, they were too weak even to cast soul spells. They gathered together and flew toward the direction where Chu Gao and the other four were.

“The Eight-Claw Soul Fish are coming! Everyone, go and kill them!” Yue Zheng shouted suddenly when he saw the creatures approaching, as no agreement had been reached among the five. In the air, Chu Gao, Zu Xiao, Zhuang Xiao, and Zong Chun didn’t move. They saw Qu Yi chasing after those Eight-Claw Soul Fish and still hesitated due to their previous agreement.

But Yue Zheng didn’t care. Knowing that Qu Yi still hadn’t given up on these Eight-Claw Soul Fish meant that some of them must have Soul Cores inside them. Thus, as soon as Yue Zheng spoke, he suddenly took out a fire-red sphere the size of an egg—a Fire Thunder. “Destructive Sky Thunder, blow them to death!” Yue Zheng shouted excitedly and immediately threw the Fire Thunder. Boom! The Fire Thunder landed right on top of the ten fleeing Eight-Claw Soul Fish, exploding violently with sparks flying everywhere, filling the entire space with intense celestial fire. The ten Eight-Claw Soul Fish didn’t have time to escape and were all killed by the Destructive Sky Thunder. Yue Zheng quickly flew down and picked up the five Soul Cores that had merged to an advanced stage from the ground, laughing excitedly. “Soul Cores, give them to me!” Suddenly, Qu Yi’s voice rang out. Yue Zheng instantly became as fierce as a tiger, glaring angrily at Qu Yi.